The Journalist's Predicament: Difficult Choices in a Declining Profession

Low pay. Uncertain work prospects. Diminished prestige. Why would anyone still want be a journalist? Drawing on in-depth interviews in France and the United States, Matthew Powers and Sandra Vera-Zambrano explore the ways individuals come to believe that journalism is a worthy pursuit—and how that conviction is managed and sometimes dissolves amid the profession’s ongoing upheavals. For many people, journalism represents a job that is interesting and substantial, with opportunities for expression, a sense of self-fulfillment, and a connection to broader social values. By distilling complex ideas, holding the powerful to account, and revealing hidden realities, journalists play a crucial role in helping audiences make sense of the world. Experiences in the profession, though, are often far more disappointing. Many find themselves doing tasks that bear little relation to what attracted them initially or are frustrated by institutions privileging what sells over what informs. The imbalance between the profession’s economic woes and its social importance threatens to erode individuals’ beliefs that journalism remains a worthwhile pursuit. Powers and Vera-Zambrano emphasize that, as with many seemingly individual choices, social factors—class, gender, education, and race—shape how journalists make sense of their profession and whether or not they remain in it. An in-depth story of one profession under pressure, The Journalist’s Predicament uncovers tensions that also confront other socially important jobs like teaching, nursing, and caretaking.

Table of Contents:
Acknowledgments Introduction: Why Would Anyone Be a Journalist? 1. The Genesis of the Journalist’s Predicament 2. Living For—and Maybe Off—Journalism 3. At Their Best 4. Conserve, Challenge, Accede 5. Leaving Journalism Conclusion Epilogue: Is Journalism Dying? Appendix A: Interviewing as Comprehension Appendix B: Seattle and Toulouse as Regional Media Appendix C: Tables and Data Notes Bibliography Index

About the Author :
Matthew Powers is an associate professor in the Department of Communication at the University of Washington in Seattle, where he codirects the Center for Journalism, Media, and Democracy. His books include NGOs as Newsmakers: The Changing Landscape of International News (Columbia, 2018). Sandra Vera-Zambrano is a member of the National Research System and coordinates both the PhD program in communication and La Revista Iberoamericana at Universidad Iberoamericana, Mexico City.

Review :
What keeps journalists going in the face of wrenching changes across the news industry? Matthew Powers and Sandra Vera-Zambrano offer the most convincing answer yet to this vital question. Based on nearly a decade of comparative research in France and the United States, The Journalist’s Predicament develops a powerful new framework that connects professional norms to the individual aspirations and career trajectories of working journalists. The result is a major contribution to the sociology of news. How do French and American journalists behave in market-driven newsrooms, in the face of declining work conditions? Some resist these changes and some surrender to them; some find springboards for innovation and others leave the profession entirely. To map these varied experiences, this insightful book explores journalists’ strategies and the social conditions that subtly shape them. Powers and Vera-Zambrano's excellent book analyzes how journalists in the United States and France respond to the economic and symbolic decline of their profession. They reveal the pragmatic adjustments that journalists must make to continue believing in their work. The Journalist's Predicament is a profoundly humane, generous, and compelling book on the current transformations of newsmaking. In a path-breaking sociological analysis, Powers and Vera-Zambrano force a reckoning with the journalistic profession's enduring inequalities. Read this essential book to gain a deeper understanding of journalism's contemporary "crisis"—who thrives, who barely survives, who leaves, and why. Recommended. An important topic and a good read that tackles big problems head on, mixing candid interviews and wholesome moments with tough career changes.